Sorry if this is really simple or something...I just can't figure it out >.<

I've been using the paintbrush for a while, and recently decided to try the airbrush to get a different feel in my coloring...but I just can't use it. I've never used a airbrush before so I have no idea how it works. I can't seem to use it with my tablet; I can't get smooth gradients and reworking any area usually ruins it.

Can anyone spot me some tips? Or at least explain the basics of how the tool works?

hm. yeah, airbrush can get annoying to use. i think the best way to go about this is to set it on low opacity and use big brushes. take a gander at my digital art page, karen_web.jpg. All her skin was airbrushed, using a tablet. I used all big brushes nad low opacity.

I use the airbrush tool exclusively, and I've found that having it set at about 40% opacity works good. As far as brush size and pressure on you tablet is concerned, you have to find what works for your purposes.

I just got my first Wacom yesterday and was playing around with the airbrush in Photoshop today and was a very dissapointed.

When I used a mouse, I would have to set the pressure to around 6% or less and then just pass over the same area with the brush many times until I got the effect I wanted. I always thought that with a pressure sensitive Wacom pen, I wouldn't have to do this any more. But that's not the case, because even if I only apply my pen to the pad very lightly, it still paints a very opaque color. I don't get it? I know I only bought a Graphire with 512 pressure points, but still, there's only 100 different pressure settings in Photoshop. With 512 pressure points shouldn't I be able to get 1% pressure by just applying my pen very lightly to the Wacom pad? In fact if I apply very slight pressure (at an angle), comparable to the amount of pressure you would use when shading with a pencil, then it won't even detect my pen.

Anyway, with that said, if I lower the pressure setting in Photoshop to around 15%, then it seems to work fine.

so what what, you expected airbrush to work fine with 100 pressure? hmm. And what if the mouse initially is on the lightest setting there is, i mean how can you know what are the margins of pressure set in a mouse and wacom. One word - lame. Adjust sensitivity in wacom prefs to something lower if you want. Why would you cause anyway, 4x5 are cheap you can always return

Okay maybe I exagerated, I'm not very dissapointed, I'm just a little dissapointed. This is still a lot better than a mouse, but it's not everything I was expecting it to be.
I really believed that it would be sensitive enough to detect whether I only wanted to apply 1% of pressure to the airbrush or a 100% of pressure. I'm sure that the Intuos pens work better in this department than the Graphire pens but I'm a bit short on cash, so I think I'll stick with the one I have right now.

Dumbfish: Open up "Wacom Tablet" in the Control Panel (assuming you're using Windows) and read the help file and user manual. They are a very good read and will explain the different settings and options so you can get the pressure sensitivity, mapping, etc. working the way you want it to. You should also download the latest drivers for your tablet too. I hope this helps! If you need any other help with your tablet just ask. I have a Graphire 4x5 as well, btw.

Yo, don't worry i also had some different expectations on WACOM (intuos) Because it felt a little strange to draw with it.. only about a year after it feels more comfortable =]

But now when i try to draw with a mouse, it's a sea of difference.
Also when i got my tablet i asked what kind of settings did dhabih use. He said he used all default settings excep he tweaked sensitivity a bit.